Electrical junction box

ABSTRACT

An electrical junction box includes an upper box section having an opened lower part, and a lower box section whose upper part is open and is mounted to the lower part of the upper box section, wherein the lower box section includes an abutment protrusion part which protrudes from an outer surface of the lower box section and has an abutment surface that abuts against an edge surface of the lower part of the upper box section when the lower box section is mounted to the upper box section. The abutment protrusion part includes an inclined surface at a place where the abutment protrusion part further extends outwards at least than an outer surface of the upper box section in a direction parallel with the abutment surface, the inclined surface connecting to the abutment surface and being inclined downwards from the abutment surface.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

1. Field of the Invention

The present invention relates, in general, to an electrical junction boxhaving an upper box section and a lower box section which is mounted ata lower part of the upper box section.

2. Description of the Related Art

Conventionally, an electrical junction box, in which electricalcomponents such as connectors, relays, fuses, or the like areintensively integrated, is mounted in an engine room to supply electricpower to electronic appliances mounted in a vehicle, for example. Suchan electrical junction box may include an upper box section whose lowerend part is open, and a lower box section whose upper end part is openand is mounted at the lower end part of the upper box section. Proposedhas been in Japanese Patent No. 3221363 for example an electricaljunction box in which a plurality of walls is provided at a couplingpart between the upper box section and the lower box section to preventwater from infiltrating therethrough.

The electrical junction box disclosed in Japanese Patent No. 3221363includes an upper cover section (the upper box section) whose lower endpart is open, and a lower cover section (the lower box section) that isa closed-bottomed box section which is mounted to the upper coversection to cover the lower end part of the upper cover section and has,on an outer surface thereof, a flange part (an abutment protrusion part)having an abutment surface that abuts against a lower edge of the uppercover when mounted thereto.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

However, in the electrical junction box 100 disclosed in Japanese PatentNo. 3221363, as shown in FIG. 7, if the abutment protrusion part 121protruding from the outer surface 120 a of the lower box section 120further extends outwards than the upper box section 110 in a directionparallel with the abutment surface 121 a, a problem may arise that waterW infiltrates into the electrical junction box 100 through the abutmentsurface 121 a, thereby degrading a waterproof function.

Accordingly, the present invention has been made keeping in mind theabove problems, and one non-limited object of the present invention isto provide an electrical junction box capable of preventing water frominfiltrating into the inside thereof through an abutment surface of alower box section that comes into contact with a lower edge of an upperbox section.

A first aspect of the present invention provides an electrical junctionbox, including: an upper box section having an opened lower part; and alower box section whose upper part is open and is mounted to the lowerpart of the upper box section, wherein the lower box section includes anabutment protrusion part which protrudes from an outer surface of thelower box section and has an abutment surface that abuts against an edgesurface of the lower part of the upper box section when the lower boxsection is mounted to the upper box section, wherein the abutmentprotrusion part includes an inclined surface at a place where theabutment protrusion part further extends outwards at least than an outersurface of the upper box section in a direction parallel with theabutment surface, the inclined surface connecting to the abutmentsurface and being inclined downwards from the abutment surface.

In a second aspect of the present invention, the electrical junction boxmay be configured so that a through-hole is formed that passes throughthe abutment protrusion part of the abutment protrusion part in avertical direction.

In a third aspect of the present invention, the electrical junction boxmay be configured so that the inclined surface connects to the abutmentsurface at a position that is slightly inwards from the outer surface ofthe upper box section in the direction parallel with the abutmentsurface.

According to the electrical junction box of the first aspect of thepresent invention, when water is poured over a part of the abutmentprotrusion part that further protrudes outwards from the outer surfaceof the upper box section in the direction parallel with the abutmentsurface, the water is guided downwards from the lower box section whileflowing along the inclined surface, or otherwise bounces out of theinclined surface outwards from the electrical junction box, therebypreventing water from infiltrating into the electrical junction boxthrough the abutment surface of the lower box section which comes intocontact with the lower edge of the upper box section.

According to the electrical junction box of the second aspect of thepresent invention, when water is poured over a part of the abutmentprotrusion part that further protrudes outwards from the upper boxsection in the direction parallel with the abutment surface, the wateris guided downwards from the lower box section while passing through thethrough-hole, thereby further improving the waterproofing effect.

According to the electrical junction box of third aspect of the presentinvention, it is ensured that the inclined surface is formed at a partof the abutment protrusion part that further protrudes outwards from theupper box section in the direction parallel with the abutment surface.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

In the accompanying drawings:

FIG. 1 is an exploded perspective view of an electrical junction boxaccording to an embodiment of the present invention;

FIG. 2 is a perspective view of the electrical junction box shown inFIG. 1;

FIG. 3 is a lower view of the surroundings of a side cover section shownin FIG. 2 when viewed from a lower side thereof;

FIG. 4 is an upper view of a lower cover section when viewed from anupper side thereof;

FIG. 5 is an enlarged view of the surroundings of an abutment protrusionpart shown in FIG. 1;

FIG. 6 is a sectional view of the surroundings of the abutmentprotrusion part, which is taken along line VI-VI of FIG. 5; and

FIG. 7 shows the related art.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE EXEMPLARY EMBODIMENTS

An embodiment of an electrical junction box will now be described indetail with reference to the accompanying drawings.

Embodiment

FIG. 1 is an exploded perspective view of an electrical junction box 1according to an embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 2 is aperspective view of the electrical junction box 1 shown in FIG. 1.

Here, FIG. 2 shows the inside of the electrical junction box bypenetrating an upper cover section 20.

FIG. 3 is a lower view of the surroundings of a side cover section 30shown in FIG. 2 when viewed from a lower side thereof. FIG. 4 is anupper view of a lower cover section 40 when viewed from a side of anupper surface 40 c thereof. FIG. 5 is an enlarged view of thesurroundings of an abutment protrusion part 50 shown in FIG. 1. FIG. 6is a sectional view of the surroundings of the abutment protrusion part50, which is taken along line VI-VI of FIG. 5.

The electrical junction box 1 according to the embodiment of the presentinvention includes a box body 10 as an upper box section whose lowerpart 10 f is open, and a lower cover section 40 as a lower box sectionwhose upper part 40 c is open and is mounted to cover the lower part 10f of the box body 10. A side cover section 30 is attached to the boxbody 10 to shield a groove part 10 e on the box body in which aconnector 12 a of an electrical connection member 12 is accommodated.

The box body 10 will now be described.

The box body 10 forms a main accommodation part of the electricaljunction box 1 in which electrical components 11 a such as connectors,relays, fuses, or the like are accommodated.

The box body 10 is made of electrically insulating synthetic resin, andhas an outer contour that is defined by a barrel type outer wall. Thebox body has a partition wall 10 a which allows a cassette block 11, inwhich electrical components 11 a are mounted, to be dividedlyaccommodated.

The box body 10 has, on the outer surface thereof, a groove part 10 ewhich extends linearly from an upper end to a lower end thereof and inwhich the connector 12 a of the electrical connection member 12 isaccommodated.

As shown in FIG. 1, the electrical connection member 12 is an electricwire having a terminal, i.e., the connector 12 a. The connector 12 a isaccommodated in the groove part 10 e on the box body 10. One end of theelectrical connection member is connected to the electrical component 11a which is mounted in the cassette block 11 in the electrical junctionbox 1, and the other end of the electrical connection member is drawnfrom a groove part 43 on the lower cover section 40 and is connected toan external power supply that is not shown in the drawings.

Although the electrical connection member 12 is illustrated as anelectric wire having a terminal, the electrical connection member is notlimited thereto, but may employ other components that can electricallyconnect the electric part 11 a in the electrical junction box 1 to anexternal power supply.

The side cover section 30 slides along the groove part 10 e on the boxbody 10 from the upper side toward the lower side and is attached to thegroove part 10 e.

Next, the upper cover section 20 will be described.

As shown in FIG. 2, the upper cover section 20 has a box shape whosebottom is open, and is mounted to the box body 10 when a lower edge 20 athereof covers an upper edge of the box body 10.

Next, the side cover section 30 will be described.

As shown in FIGS. 1 to 3, the side cover section 30 has an engaging part32 (see FIG. 3) for fixing the electrical connection member 12 to aplanar base part 31 that serves as a main body part.

The engaging part 32 for the electrical connection member is provided ona surface 31 a on the side where the planar base part 31 is attached tothe box body 10. Thus, when the side cover section 30 is attached tocover a channel opening of the box body 10, the connector 12 a of theelectrical connection member 12 is accommodated in the groove part 10 eon the box body 10.

Next, the lower cover section 40 will be described.

The lower cover section 40 has a box shape which has an opened upperpart 40 c, a substantially rectangular bottom wall part 41, and asurrounding side wall part 42 which stands from a circumference of thebottom wall part 41. The lower cover section 40 is mounted to the boxbody 10 when an upper part 40 a thereof covers a lower part 10 c of thebox body 10. That is, the lower cover section 40 is mounted, as thelower box section, to the lower part of the box body 10 as the upper boxsection.

As shown in FIGS. 5 and 6, the lower cover section 40 is mounted to thebox body 10 to cover the lower part 10 f of the box body 10. The lowercover section 40 has an abutment protrusion part 50 which protrudes froman outer surface 40 b thereof and has an abutment surface 51 that abutsagainst an edge surface of a lower part 10 g of the box body 10 whenmounted to the box body 10.

As shown in FIG. 1, the abutment protrusion part 50 serves as a supportleg part that protrudes downwards below the bottom surface of the lowercover section 40 to support and fix the lower cover section 40 to theinside of an engine room. Two abutment protrusion parts 50 are providedon an outer surface of one of surrounding side walls 42 that are aportion of the outer surface 40 b of the lower cover section 40.

Thus, the abutment protrusion part 50 supports the box body 10 bysupporting and fixing the lower cover section 40 to the inside of theengine room as the support leg room as well as by abutment against theedge surface of the lower part 10 g of the box body 10.

Each of the abutment protrusion parts 50 that is provided at two placeshas an inclined surface 52 at a place where the abutment protrusion part50 further extends outwards from the box body 10 in the directionparallel with the abutment surface 51. The inclined surface 52 connectsto the abutment surface 51 and is inclined downwards from the abutmentsurface 51.

The inclined surface 52 connects to the abutment surface 51 at aposition that is collinear to the outer surface 10 d of the box body 10,or that is slightly inwards from the outer surface 10 d, in thedirection parallel with the abutment surface 51.

In order to securely form the inclined surface 52 at a position wherethe abutment protrusion part 50 further extends outwards from the outersurface of the upper box section, it is preferred that the inclinedsurface 52 connects to the abutment surface 51 from a position that isslightly inward from the outer surface 10 d of the box body 10.

The inclined surface 52 has a through-hole 53 that passes through theabutment protrusion part 50 in a vertical direction.

In the electrical junction box 1, for example, when water is poured overthe abutment surface 51 to wash an engine room, as shown in FIG. 6, thewater is guided downwards from the lower cover section 40 while flowingalong the inclined surface 52, or otherwise bounces out of theelectrical junction box 1 from the inclined surface.

Further, when water is poured over the through-hole 53, the water isguided downwards from the lower cover section 40 while escaping throughthe through-hole 53.

In the electrical junction box 1 according to the embodiment of thepresent invention, when water is poured over a part of the abutmentprotrusion part 50 that further protrudes outwards from the box body 10in the direction parallel with the abutment surface 51 of the abutmentprotrusion part 50, the water is guided downwards from the lower boxsection 40 while flowing along the inclined surface 52, or otherwisebounces out of the inclined surface 52 outwards from the electricaljunction box 1, thereby preventing water from infiltrating into theelectrical junction box 1 through the abutment surface 51 of the lowerbox section 40 which comes into contact with the edge surface of thelower part 10 g of the box body 10.

In the electrical junction box 1 according to the embodiment of thepresent invention, when water is poured over a part of the abutmentprotrusion part 50 that further protrudes outwards from the box body 10in the direction parallel with the abutment surface 51 of the abutmentprotrusion part 50, the water is guided downwards from the lower boxsection 40 while passing through the through-hole 53, thereby furtherimproving the waterproofing effect.

In the electrical junction box 1 according to the embodiment of thepresent invention, the inclined surface 52 connects to the abutmentsurface 51 at a position that is collinear to the outer surface 10 d ofthe box body 10, or that is slightly inwards from the outer surface 10d, in the direction parallel with the abutment surface 51, therebysecurely forming the inclined surface 52 at a position where theprotrusion part further protrudes outwards from the box body 10 in thedirection parallel with the abutment surface 51.

Although the embodiments of the present invention have illustrated thatthe electrical junction box 1 includes the upper cover section 20, thebox body 10, the side cover section 30, and the lower cover section 40,the present invention is not limited to the embodiments. Otherelectrical junction boxes may be also employed if the electricaljunction box includes an upper box section having an opened lower part,and a lower box section whose upper part is open and is mounted to thelower side of the upper box section, and which has an abutmentprotrusion part which protrudes from an outer surface thereof and has anabutment surface that abuts against an edge surface of the lower part ofthe upper box section when mounted to the upper box section. Forexample, there may be an electrical junction box in which the uppercover section 20 serves as an upper box section relative to the box body10, and the abutment protrusion part is formed on the box body 10 thatserves as a lower box section relative to the upper cover section 20.Alternatively, there may be an electrical junction box in which theupper cover section 20 serves as an upper box section, and the box body10 and the lower cover section 40 are integrally formed and serve as alower box section.

Although the embodiments of the present invention have illustrated thatthe electrical junction box 1 has the abutment protrusion part 50 thatserves as a support leg to fix the lower cover section to the inside ofan engine room, the present invention is not limited thereto. Theabutment protrusion may for example be a part that protrudes from theouter surface of the lower cover section and has an abutment surfacethat abuts against an edge surface of the lower part of the upper boxsection. For example, the abutment protrusion part may be a reinforcingpart that protrudes from the lower cover section only to reinforce thelower cover section without having a support function.

Although the present invention contrived by the inventors has beendescribed in detail based on the above-mentioned embodiments, thepresent invention is not limited thereto, and various modifications arepossible, without departing from the scope and spirit of the presentinvention.

This application is based upon and claims the benefit of priority ofJapanese Patent Application No. 2012-129833 filed on Jun. 7, 2012, thecontents of which are incorporated herein by reference in its entirety.

What is claimed is:
 1. An electrical junction box, comprising: an uppercover section having an opened lower part; and a lower cover sectionwhose upper part is open and is mounted to the lower part of the uppercover section, wherein the lower cover section includes an abutmentprotrusion part which protrudes from an outer surface of the lower coversection and has an abutment surface that abuts against an edge surfaceof the lower part of the upper cover section when the lower coversection is mounted to the upper cover section, wherein the abutmentprotrusion part includes an inclined surface at a place where theabutment protrusion part further extends outwards at least than an outersurface of the upper cover section in a direction parallel with theabutment surface, the inclined surface connecting to the abutmentsurface and being inclined downwards from the abutment surface, andwherein water is guided downwards from the lower cover section along theinclined surface outward from the junction box thereby preventing waterfrom infiltrating past the abutment surface into the junction box. 2.The electrical junction box according to claim 1, wherein a through-holeis formed that passes through the abutment protrusion part in a verticaldirection.
 3. The electrical junction box according to claim 1, whereinthe inclined surface connects to the abutment surface at a position thatis slightly inwards from the outer surface of the upper cover section inthe direction parallel with the abutment surface.